Ferry To St Malo with Brittany Ferries

Brittany Ferries

Since its formation, in 1972, largely in order to transport cauliflowers and artichokes from Roscoff to Plymouth, Brittany Ferries has grown into the leading maritime carrier on the Western and Central Channel.

As Brittany Ferries has matured, so has its significance to tourism in Western France and Northern Spain, with its influence reaching far beyond simply Brittany and Normandy. Not only is it a ferry operator, but it acts as a tour operator as well, supplying a vast range of self-drive holidays throughout France, Spain and, to a lesser extent, Portugal.

Today, Brittany Ferries operates one of the most modern fleets on the Channel, with 9 ships and over 2,500 employees. It accounts for over 50% of the traffic on the Western Channel, carrying in excess of 2.6 million passengers, 780,000 cars and 170,000 lorries a year. Read more about Brittany Ferries

As with all routes and companies, try book early and book securely online for the low ferry fares.

Brittany Ferries Site Information

When Great Britain joined the Common Market, the local farming co-operatives joined with the North Finistère Chamber of Commerce to form Brittany Ferries. It was recognised at the time that the UK represented a huge market for both the strong Breton farming community and Brittany as a tourist destination. In other words, Brittany Ferries could ship fresh produce north and bring tourists south.

Thirty years later the French farming co-operatives remain majority shareholders. Indeed, the split between the various categories – pension funds, banks, individuals and so on - has changed remarkably little since day one, as has another feature of Brittany Ferries’ ownership – the French State has no financial stake.

In 1978, less than 10 years after it had started, this fast-developing ferry company took the brave step of starting services to Santander in Northern Spain, at the same time entering the Irish market with the Cork-Roscoff route. Both have grown steadily and continue to do so today.

As Brittany Ferries has matured, so has its significance to tourism in Western France and Northern Spain, with its influence reaching far beyond simply Brittany and Normandy. Not only is it a ferry operator, but it acts as a tour operator as well, supplying a vast range of self-drive holidays throughout France, Spain and, to a lesser extent, Portugal.

Today, Brittany Ferries operates one of the most modern fleets on the Channel, with 9 ships and over 2,500 employees. It accounts for over 50% of the traffic on the Western Channel, carrying in excess of 2.6 million passengers, 780,000 cars and 170,000 lorries a year.

The Fleet

mv Barfleur: An Overview

Launched in 1992, the Barfleur is smaller than the rest of the fleet, but still offers fantastic onboard facilities including excellent dining, shopping and entertainment.

Operating on a daily service between Poole and Cherbourg throughout the year, she is named after a picturesque, small fishing village in Normandy, only 25 kilometres from Cherbourg.

mv Bretagne: An Overview

The Bretagne has first-rate onboard facilities, including excellent dining, shopping and live entertainment, and can accommodate over 2000 passengers, almost half of them in cabin accommodation.

It is named after the French region Brittany, and is decorated in traditional Breton style and colours.

mv Mont St Michel: An Overview

Named after the beautiful Normandy town of Mont St Michel, the ship offers passengers a host of other features including spacious cabins, a choice of restaurants, bars, cinemas, an Internet cafe and a disco club and video gaming area designed specifically for teenagers.

Carrying up to 2,200 passengers and with over two kilometres of vehicle space, the ship also features a range of state-of-the-art navigation and safety management systems making it not only one of the most comfortable channel cruise ferries afloat, but also one of the best equipped.

mv Normandie: An Overview

Following the success of the Bretagne, Brittany Ferries commissioned The Normandie in 1991 for the route between Portsmouth and Caen.

Named after the French region of the same name, it is decorated in traditional Norman style and colours, and features first-rate on-board facilities, including excellent dining, shopping and live entertainment.

Normandie Express: An Overview

Introduced in 2005, the High Speed Normandie Express provides a fast ferry crossing to Cherbourg and Caen from Portsmouth.

Operating from mid-March until mid-November with crossing times of only 180 minutes to Cherbourg and 225 minutes to Caen, the ship runs up to two return trips a day to Cherbourg and a daily service to Caen every Friday, Saturday and Sunday supplementing the three return crossings a day by conventional cruise-ferry.

Normandie Vitesse: An Overview

Launched in 1998, the High Speed Normandie Vitesse provides the fastest ferry crossing to Cherbourg from the UK.

It operates a daily service from Poole to Cherbourg between mid-May and mid-September leaving Poole at 07:30 and returning from Cherbourg at 11:30.

Pont L'Abbé : An Overview

Named after the pretty town in Brittany, Pont L'Abbé joined our fleet in March 2006 and serves the Plymouth-Roscoff route.

Pont L'Abbé can accommodate 410 cars and 1,200 passengers in comfort and has a considerable amount of public space and sun decks for day crossings.

mv Pont-Aven: An Overview

The Pont-Aven is our luxurious £100m flagship ferry, launched in March 2004, setting new standards in passenger ferry travel.

Cruising on the Pont-Aven is like taking a holiday in itself, and it has dramatically improved sailing times to Spain and France. Crossing time to Santander has now been cut to less than 24 hours, and sailing times between Plymouth, Roscoff and Cork have also been reduced.

It boasts stunning features including a superb pool and leisure area, a wrap around promenade for pleasant deck strolls, a dramatic five deck high atrium with panoramic views from the lifts, and outstanding accommodation.

Onboard accommodation

Cabins provide an ideal base during the crossing. By day or by night, they give you a place to relax, sleep and store your belongings. Outside cabins provide a sea view. We can also offer a limited number of cabins adapted for passengers with special needs. If you have not booked a cabin before boarding, but you would like one, please ask at the Information Desk for availability.

Onboard Dining

Delicious French cuisine can be enjoyed in a choice of à la carte and self-service restaurants on all of our cruise ships. We have talented French chefs, and our food is the highlight of every journey.

You can choose between excellent formal dining, a self-service restaurant, or a great cafe. All of our on-board restaurants have an excellent wine selection, many of which can also be bought in our shops.

On our cruise ferries we have the following dining and drinking options:

Main restaurants:

We offer a superb array of dishes to suit all tastes. Our main restaurant is always popular with a superb buffet of fine French cuisine on the menu. Starters include smoked salmon and langoustines, main courses include fish, meat and vegetarian dishes, and there are sumptuous desserts and fine French cheeses.

Self-service restaurants:

Our self-service restaurants provide snacks, buffets, and hot dishes. We offer favourite British dishes such as fish and chips, plus salads, baguettes, sandwiches and other snacks. Hot and cold beverages, plus wine, beer and cider are also available. Children are always well catered for with a special under twelves’ menu and a good range of baby food is also available.

All our cruise ferries offer passengers an impressive selection of comfortable lounges and bars to enjoy. Enjoy a drink or two in a convivial atmosphere - maybe make some new friends - or simply settle down in elegant surroundings and do as little as you wish.

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Ferry Route Details:

Weymouth to St Malo Ferry by Condor Ferries . Weymouth to St.Malo - Fast Ferry. This service operates year round. Crossing times from 5 hours 15 minutes. From 22nd May to 30th September 2007 require a simple change of vessel in either Guernsey or Jersey - the perfect opportunity to sample the delights of the Channel Islands. more...

Poole to St Malo Ferry by Condor Ferries . Poole to St.Malo - Fast Ferry. This service operates between 22nd May and 30th September 2007 via either Jersey or Guernsey. Crossing time 4 hours 35 minutes. The fastest route for taking your car to Brittany!
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Dover - Calais Ferry (cheaper short crossing alternative) by Seafrance and P&O ferries. Frequent sailings available almost every half an hour. Crossing takes from 45 minitues to 1 hour 20 minutes. Get prices

St Malo

Saint-Malo is a walled port city in Brittany in northern France on the English Channel. It is a sous-préfecture of the Ille-et-Vilaine département.

Saint-Malo has 50,000 inhabitants, but that number can increase to up to 200,000 in the summer tourist season. With the suburbs, the population is about 135,000.

St Malo History

Saint-Malo during the Middle Ages was a fortified island at the mouth of the Rance River, controlling not only the estuary but the open sea beyond. The promontory fort of Aleth, south of the modern centre in what is now the Saint-Servan district, commanded approaches to the Rance even before the Romans, but modern Saint-Malo traces its origins to a monastic settlement founded by Saint Aaron and Saint Brendan early in the 6th century. Its name is derived from a man said to have been a follower of Brendan, Saint Malo.

In the later centuries it became notorious as the home of a fierce breed of pirate-mariners, who were never quite under anyone's control but their own; for four years from 1590, Saint-Malo even declared itself to be an independent republic, taking up the motto "not French, not Breton, but Malois". The Corsairs of Saint-Malo not only forced English ships passing up the Channel to pay tribute, but also brought wealth from further afield. Jacques Cartier, who sailed the St Lawrence river and visited the sites of Quebec City and Montréal - and is thus credited as the discoverer of Canada, lived in and sailed from Saint-Malo, as did the first colonists to settle the Falklands – hence the islands' Argentinian name, Islas Malvinas, from the French Îles Malouines.

The commune of Saint-Servan was merged, together with Paramé, and became the commune of Saint-Malo in 1967.

Saint Malo was the site of an Anglo-French summit which lead to a significant agreement regarding European defence policy. British Prime Minister Tony Blair and French President Jacques Chirac stated that "the [European] Union must have the capacity for autonomous action, backed up by credible military forces, the means to decide to use them, and a readiness to do so, in order to respond to international crises".

Ferry St Malo: Sites of interest

Now inseparably attached to the mainland, Saint-Malo is the most visited place in Brittany. Sites of interest include:

The top optional beach on the English Channel

The walled city (La Ville Intra-Muros)

The château of Saint-Malo with The Solidor tower of Saint-Servan. It shelters a collection of the museum of Saint-Malo on Cape Horn. Many reduced models, nautical instruments and objects made by the sailors during their crossing or brought back from far away stops shall make the visitors dream in these travels aboard extraordinary tall ships at the end of the 19th and the beginning of the 20th century.

The tomb of the writer Chateaubriand on the Ile de Grand Bé

The Cathedral of St. Vincent

Ferry St Malo: Condor Ferries Info:

Saint-Malo is a historic walled port city in Brittany, and one of the most popular destinations in the region. Saint Malo is famed for its old walled city where you will find beautiful old buildings in a maze of small narrow streets, museums, restaurants and cafés. The city also offers some serious retail therapy, with a wide choice of hypermarkets and specialist shopping.

Ferry St Malo: GEOGRAPHY

St. Malo sits on the mouth of the river Rance in Brittany. The city is a walled citadel connected to the mainland by a causeway. The main gates to the citadel are the Grande Porte and the Porte St-Vincent. To the right of the Porte St-Vincent is the town's castle, which houses the Musée de la Ville. The city is surrounded by beaches, accessible under the city ramparts at several points.
GETTING AROUND

St. Malo is easy to explore on foot, with the city ramparts offering a walkway around sections of the city. Bicycles can also be hired and used to explore the city and the surrounding area.

The surrounding areas are also easily accessible from the city bus station, situated 1.2 miles from the city centre on Place de Hermine. Ferries also sail from the port area, a few hundred metres from the southern wall of the city, to Dinard, a former fishing village situated on a picturesque inlet on the west bank of the Rance estuary.

Ferry St Malo: FOOD AND DRINK

As you'd expect, St. Malo offers a breadth of good eating to suit all tastes and budgets. Local specialities include fresh lobsters and Cancale oysters, as well as other classic French fare such as crepes and moules. Some of the most popular restaurants and cafés are situated in a long-line inside the city ramparts between Porte St-Vincent and the Grande Porte.

Ferry St Malo: THINGS TO DO

Château de St. Malo

The Château De St. Malo, to the right of city's main gate, Porte St-Vincent, houses the city museum, Musée de la Ville.

The museum offers exhibits covering St. Malo's historic past, with maps, diagrams and dioramas documenting a history incorporating piracy, colonialism, slave trading, and more recently, German occupation during World War II.

Cathedral of St. Vincent

The Cathedral of St. Vincent dates from the 9th century and includes Angevin, Plantagenet, Romanesque and Gothic architecture. It is famous for its 1160 nave vault, as well as its magnificent choir concerts and organ playing. Admission is free and it's open daily from 8am to 7pm.

Ramparts

The city ramparts date from the 12th century and stretch 1.2 miles from Saint-Vincent Gate to the Saint-Thomas Gate. Walking along the ramparts you can admire fantastic views of the old town's houses, the bay and the islets at the mouth of the Rance estuary.
The Grand Aquarium

Situated a few miles south of the citadel, St Malo's Grand Aquarium displays fish and sea life from around the world in 8 different aquariums. The aquariums include a circular fish tank, allowing visitors to stand in the middle of swirling fish shoals. Other attractions include underwater rides on a Nautibus, and ship wreck and a lost city exhibits.

Ile du Grand Bé

Low tide offers a 25-minute walk to the island of Grand-Be. As well as spectacular views of the surrounding coastline, the island holds the tomb of the 19th Century writer-politician, Chateaubriand.

Ferry St Malo: PRACTICAL INFORMATION

Money

France adopted the Euro in 2002. Money exchange facilities are widely available, as are ATM machines (known as distributeur or point argent) accepting credit or debit cards.

Passports

For citizens of EU countries, a current valid identity card is sufficient to enter France. However, if you are a citizen of a non EU country, a passport is obligatory, with a visa required for certain other countries. Minors travelling alone must carry authorization for travelling signed by their parents.

Ferry St Malo: BRITTANY FERRIES

St Malo - The Perfect Short Break Destination: St Malo is a beautiful city with many historical and leisure attractions and is a perfect short break destination.

It’s heart lies in the old walled town, where you can walk round the ramparts of the city’s 20-foot thick walls for one mile to get splendid views of the town and the harbour.

Lower down, the city’s winding streets, reminds one of a medieval maze, where you can stumble upon quaint shops and superb restaurants offering local seafood specialities and plenty of bars to enjoy a drink.

Other top Attractions include the Château de St Malo, St Malo's Cathédrale and The Grand Aquarium.

Our service from Portsmouth will take you direct to St Malo and with our excellent range of hotels, we have short breaks suitable for all budgets and tastes.